Looking at Sharpening Stone Systems

Larry,

I did read up some on lapping the Shaptons with a diamond stone. Over at the Craftsman Studio, they talk about using DMT Interuppted stones for flattening and they do NOT recommend it ( http://craftsmanstudio.com.s54421.gridserver.com/blog/?p=31 ).

There are certain kinds they do say it's ok. Whats funny is one of the reasons they say not to do it is that the Shapton is so hard, it can remove the nickel that is used to bind the diamonds to the diamond stone, if I understand it correctly.

They do mention that it is ok to flatten them with 220-320 grit W/D paper on a flat surface, so that's probably what I'll do...

http://craftsmanstudio.com.s54421.gridserver.com/blog/?p=21

Thanks for the heads up!

Something I wanted to add, a tip I picked up from Garret Hack when he was here, you really need to be mindful of contaminating your stones. When you move from the #400 to the #1000, you need to make sure you leave all the #400 grit off the #1000 stone, or you are just rubbing the #400 grit into your #1000 stone. Clean your stones before you move on and clean the tool you are working on too. When you flatten your stones, be mindful of this too, whatever you use to flatten the stone, make sure it is cleaned off after use. If you flatten your #1000 stone and don't clean off the glass or such, and then you flatten your #8000 stone, then there will be a bunch of #1000 grit on your #8000 stone, not what you want to do.

Good habits to get into.

FYI

Cleanliness is next so Sharpliness, I reckon!

I typically follow that kind of procedure for a lot of things abrasive related, I.e. polishing/Buffing metal, pens, etc....

Very good tip!

Brent Dowell said:

Larry,

I did read up some on lapping the Shaptons with a diamond stone. Over at the Craftsman Studio, they talk about using DMT Interuppted stones for flattening and they do NOT recommend it .

There are certain kinds they do say it's ok. Whats funny is one of the reasons they say not to do it is that the Shapton is so hard, it can remove the nickel that is used to bind the diamonds to the diamond stone, if I understand it correctly.

They do mention that it is ok to flatten them with 220-320 grit W/D paper on a flat surface, so that's probably what I'll do...

Click to expand...

Brent, as long as you flatten often, the process will go easier, faster and will not be a chore. If you let it go....well you will really find out how much harder they are and how long it will take you to correct the dishing.

So if you flatten often and thus are not trying to take much off, I think you will find that most any flattening product will work great. That has been my experience.

Thanks Bill,

I was looking at your sharpening pond thread today. Looks like a pretty nice way to go. I'm thinking of making something similar at somepoint. I think the key to getting things sharp will be organization, and practice...

Brent Dowell said:

Thanks Bill,

I was looking at your sharpening pond thread today. Looks like a pretty nice way to go. I'm thinking of making something similar at somepoint. I think the key to getting things sharp will be organization, and practice...

Click to expand...

Hold off on the stone holders I made. I am not liking them as much as I hoped. Too tippy for my taste. What is really working for me, is the "pond" I bought and the ridged car mat that I had put on bottom (inside). I just lay the stone down on it and they do not move. The "pond" has that great pouring corner that makes emptying it very easy and almost spill proof.

The only thing that I would be concerned about is the glass series of Shaptons you have would sit lower than my professional set (with the glass I epoxied on the bottom) and I wonder if the "pond" sides would interfere with your sharpening stroke.

PM me if you are interested in more details of where I got everything. I am also thinking of making my own "pond" out of pvc that would be self draining (tubing draining into a bucket) with lower sides.